Histories
Vergil Apollinius' The Histories of Tierra Verde and the Birth of Man The following is a summary of the events described in Vergil Appolinius' The Histories of Tierra Verde and the Birth of Man. It should be known that Vergil Apollinius has compiled these histories from the collections of the libraries of the HOST, and may not be entirely accurate. 'Preface' The known histories of Oron span a length of two-thousand years, twenty centuries, in the time of our people, from the origin of man 'til the first day of this year, the year six-seventy-six in the Age of Men. From these many years we can divine six Ages of influence that we can use as a measure of time, and follow as thus: The Age of Giants, The Tsionian Era, The Age of Loss, The Age of Inheritance, The Age of Battle and the Age of Men. Of these Ages the lengths are arbitrary; defined not by span but instead by events and influence. Here, I have compiled a synopsis of the events for the sake of posterity and knowledge. 'Ch.1 - On The Age of Giants and the Birth of Man' At the dawn of mankind, Tierra Verde was not ruled by Sanhedrin, nor Alfar or Aegians, but instead it was a time of Fomori (Giants) and wild beast-like Fae courts. The Fomori were the masters of stone and water, binding nature to their every whim, and the Fae were so numerous in number that the growth of the humanoid races were stunted - too busy were they fighting for survival that they could not develop. Wild men roamed the hills of Verde and Sanhedrin the Midlands, the lesser number of Fae allowing the Sanhedrin to thrive. In the South, the Aegian lizardmen vye for control with the Syrictae snakemen in a back and forth struggle to control the peninsula, a struggle that would not be resolved until the Tsionian Era. 'Ch.2 - On The Tsionian Era and the Age of Empires' The beginning of the Tsionian Era would be marked by the formation of the eponymous Tsionian Dominion - an alliance of the strongest Sanhedrin tribes of the Midlands. Great bounds would be made in architecture and the development of transmutation and biomancy, establishing the Tsionian Dominion as one of the most powerful unified forces in Verde, a position they would hold for the next seven centuries. So huge was their empire, that it stretched all the way from the Costa Del Sol to the eastern coasts of Higashi-Rei, threatening even the rule of the Fomori. At this time, the race of men had began to grow, but were as slaves beneath the rules of the Sanhedrin and the Fomori. It was a time of subservience, where the talents of men were wasted as servants and unskilled labourers. Occuring towards the end of the Age was the decisive victory of the Aegian warlord Deimos over the Syrictae in the Battle of Ion, allowing the lizardmen to claim dominion over south. It was at this time that the name "Aegia" was used, now in describing the Aegian Alliance, which would later become the Aegian Empire. To the East, similar changes were occuring as the giant-kin known as Oni rose to prominance, developing a special magic to combat the powers of the wild Fae. Throughout this Age a change in the Fae courts could also be observed, slowly shifting from their previous beast-like states into more humanoid ones. These new fae would call themselves the "Tuatha" and would be the first Fae to communicate with the peoples of Verde in a non-hostile manner. 'Ch.3 - The Age of Loss' Fifteen centuries ago, Verde was subject to a great Deluge which swept through the Midlands, decimating several cities and severely crippling the Tsionian Dominion. Soon after this, the Alfar first appeared in the Midlands. The Sanhedrin were quick to enlist their aid in rebuilding their empire, and together with their former human servants, began to restore the Dominion to its former glory. However, this displeased a great many former nobles who did not like to see their former servants as equals. This conflict would begin a civil war that would last two decades. This group of nobles, who came to take the great bull as their symbol, were known as the Auroch. They indulged in heavy body transmutation through wicked magic and became huge and monstrous beings. Despite this, they could not overcome the alliance of Sanhedrin, men and Alfar and were driven into the Sandsea with their servants, the Barghests, where they would remain in exile forevermore. In the East, the wild men were adopted the ways of the Oni, emulating their civilisation and culture in the hopes of establishing cities just as they did. The Oni were all to happy to oblige, glad to have another ally agaist the wild Fae who they had come to be mortal enemies with. This kindness would ultimately be their undoing. It was in the later half of this Age when the first Great War came to Verde. Records of this time are fragmented at best, but it is believed to be the time when the Oronian League was formed and the three heroes known as Kleitos, Libra and Jacobus ascended to godhood to combat the wicked god Moloch. The League attains a pyrrhic victory, with Verde spared from Moloch's wicked rule, but also left in tatters. The end of the Great War would mark the end of the Age of Loss. 'Ch. 4 - On The Age of Inheritance and the Rise of Man' In the aftermath of the Great War, the Tsionian Dominion was dissolved and the Sanhedrin and Alfar scattered to the winds. However, from its ashes rises the glorious Empire of Suel: the first true empire of men, ruled over by the fickle God-Queen Aulsfare. She would later become the matron goddess of all humanity. All around the world, humanity would become the dominant force - in the East the Oni are driven to the brink of annihiliation by Emperor Hojo, beginning the first Dynasty of the Reijin Empire, and in the West the aldman Samhil-Danach slew the Fomori king Balar. With this humanity would launch its genocide of the giants and giant-kin, and they would disappear from Oron almost entirely thereafter. At this time, the Sanhedrin disappear into the wilds, fearful not only of retribution from their spurned kin, the Auroch and Barghests, but also of the men they had once thought of as slaves. The Alfar however, suffered no such illusions and claimed the western Midlands, splitting into the nations of Thrax, Liberia and Alaeia. In the South the weakened Aegian Empire would also be overthrown by the syrictae, who would enslave the lizardmen with dark magic. It would be in this time that the Aegians would develop their hatred of magic and its users. 'Ch.5 - On The New Age and the Quickening' The fifth age in the time of men would begin with the vanishment of the great monolith Sreng, whose impossible disappearance has remained an enigma since. This would leave Clador without a monolith, a thing that had never happened before in all of known history. Along with the monolith, the Tuatha would also vanish, leaving the Small Folk and the Fair Folk in charge of the Fae courts. In the Midlands, the Empire of Suel would reach its zenith, discovering the power of Automation. They would war with the Auroch of the Saltsea in many exchanges over many years, with the Auroch unable to gain ground but at the same time unable to be eliminated in their desert homes. This would be known as the War of the Waste. Across the mountains, the Hojo Dynasty ends and the Tsuchi Dynasty begins. The men of the east would then begin a mass campaign to purge non-humans from their lands, an event that would come to be known as the Great Winnowing. At this time, the men of the West split into two groups: The Neuman, who followed the new gods, and the Aldman who retained their ancestral beliefs. The Neuman would move south into the land they would name Godsward, and the Aldman would stay in the North, keeping the cities of the past in tact. The end of the New Age would be concurrent with the conclusion of the War of the Waste. This event, known now as the Quickening, would see the destruction of all the people of the Midlands - The mighty Empire of Suel crumbled, its people fleeing to the south, the Alfar Nations were swept away and the wild Auroch were destroyed where they stood. All the midland was lost, transforming into the dreaded region we know as the Schwarzlund, or Black Lands, today. 'Ch.6 - On The Age of Men' This Age, of which we are in the five-hundred-and-eighty-seventh year, is marked by the the formation of the Kingdoms of Godsward - Sol Invictus, Sin, Halifax, Levon and Loftus - as well as the new countries Malus (Belonging to the Scions) and Gracia (New Suel; the home of the fleeing Suloise). It would also be the beginning of hostility between Men and Aegians, who had freed themselves from the shackles of the Syrictae. At this point the Syrictae would be almost utterly destroyed by the Aegian rebellion, driven into the jungles and deserts where they would barely survive. In the East, the Tsuchi Dynasty would end and the Takeda Dynasty would begin. The northeast, which had formerly been the territory of the Tsuchi clan, now passes into the hands of the Atsuda.